The Heart Changer {A Book Review}

Summer days are a great time to sit down and enjoy a good book. I enjoy reading historical and biblical fiction. One goal I have this summer is to make time for reading so I was thrilled to get the chance to review The Heart Changer from Jarm Del Boccio, Author.

I received a digital copy of this book to read on my Kindle (physical copies are also available through the links provided in this blog post) and it took my no time at all to download and dive right in.

Set in the Ancient Middle East, this short novel draws the reader in immediately as you meet Miriam, a Jewish girl who’s family and village are in danger of invasion by the Syrian army. She is kidnapped and spirited away to become a slave in a land of strange people and strange customs.

The place where our main character is taken and expected to serve is in a pagan household – the home of Naaman. (This man’s story is found in the Bible in II Kings chapter 5.) We see not just the struggle of a girl taken from her family, her home, but also the struggle of a Jewish girl forced to live among Gentiles, who have lifestyles and traditions that challenge her faith. She makes friends with others in the household, including a Shunamite girl who is also a captive slave as well as the master’s wife. These friendships give her encouragement and strength to live out her own faith, remaining faithful to Jehovah God, and telling others about Him as well.

There are many twists and turns in the story, to keep it interesting, but in the end, Miriam steps out on faith and makes difficult decisions. These hard choices include things like helping the enemy, trusting others, and forgiveness – all because her heart was truly changed by God.

Naaman, a commander in the Syrian army and Miriam’s master, has leprosy. Miriam is moved with compassion for him and gathers up the courage to speak up in a way that will change his life.

112 pages long, The Heart Changer was written for a middle school/young adult audience, but I thoroughly enjoyed it myself. It is a captivating story that challenges my own life. It encouraged me to step back and look at my own heart and how it may need some changing.

There is a free Teacher’s Guide available for The Heart Changer. This is a fantastic resource for homeschooling parents to use with their children or for anyone who would like to learn more about the author, the topic, or go deeper into the story and it’s themes.

Jarm Del Boccio, SchoolhouseTeachers.com teacher was Inspired by classic children’s literature as a girl. She has written her debut book, The Heart Changer to inspire young readers (and not-so-young readers!) Readers will find a story of hope and healing within the pages of this beautiful story.